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Many Types of Strength
LCT's second solo story. This one follows Einion Babur through his adjustments to life at camp and his first quest. Warning: This is rated PG-13 for language and possibly some suggestive themes. If you are not ok with such things, please stop here. Main Cast: Einion "Neon" Babur Mallory Sareta Valencia Trausti - with permission from Becca Xochiquetzal Van der Aart - with permission from Bard Akantha Deire - with permission from Nikki Naomi Alva - with permission from ~Angel Wings~ Chapter 1: Roars of frustration are heard in the distance as two hobbling figures make their way unsteadily over the hill. One is missing his leg from the knee down and hops along as best he can on his one good leg and a crutch under his opposite arm. The other seems to have all limbs present, but is bleeding steadily from a gash in one of his own legs. Like the other, he has to rely on one good leg and a crutch. They reach the top of the hill and start down the opposite side, but the dirt path offers very few flat spots for the crutches to land properly. Both figures topple over and roll down the hill. Dust and dirt clings to their sweaty features, leaving them covered in a brownish-black color as they slide to a stop on a patch of grass at the base of the hill. The smaller of the two, the one with all his limbs, turns to look the other one over. "You ok? Any bleeding? Anything broken?" He pulls himself to his feet, or rather hooves, and hobbles around the muscular boy on the ground, doing a visual inspection. The boy sits up and dusts himself off, taking a moment to readjust his pinned up pant leg over the long healed stump below his right knee. "Yeah, I am good. Good thing you had these crutches though as part of your cover. Not sure we would have made it without them." "Bla-ha-ha!" The small satyr laughs. "I use them for a disguise and as makeshift weapons. I never thought I would actually have to use them for their real purpose. Oh, and sorry about that fake leg of yours. We will find someway to get you a replacement." The boy expertly uses the crutch to stand back up again. "Don't worry about it. If that dog thing wanted me for a chew toy, I am glad to give him my leg instead of something more vital." He takes a moment to look around the gigantic camp ground around him. "So this is it? This is where you said I belong?" The satyr hops over and pats him on the shoulder, sending up a small cloud of dust with the impact. "That it is. Welcome to Camp Half-Blood." He points with his free hand towards a four story house nearby. "We can get you checked in with the camp director over there, first. Then he can tell you about what is next." "What is next? Is there an entrance exam or something? Please say it is a foot race, 'cause I rock at those." They both laugh as they make their way over to the big house. As they approach the patio deck, a man in a wheelchair rolls out to meet them. "Well, that's a good sign. At least I am not the only person with a disability here." "Don't be so quick to judge, dude. The wheelchair look is just to give that comforting feel. Chiron is a total bad *** when he wants to be. You are lucky to be getting him for a teacher. And don't put yourself down either. You handled that fire axe pretty well when you had to. Everyone has their own strengths. Just give yourself time to find your groove and you will fit right in here." He gives a wave to the man before wincing as he climbs the steps to the patio. "Hail, Chiron!" "Barnaby! Welcome back! This is the young man you messaged me about?" Chiron says as he gives the boy an appraising look. "This is him!" Barnaby the satyr says with a smile. "And he is grade A hero material from what I have seen so far." "Pleased to meet you, sir." The boy says and offers his hand. "Well met, young man." Chiron says as he shakes his hand. "I am Chiron, camp activities director. What is your name?" "Einion. Einion Babur, but most people just call me Neon." The young man answers. "Barnaby already let me know about your physical challenge. I don't think there will be any problems working around that, as long as you don't use it as an excuse not to give me your very best efforts." Chiron says, raising one eyebrow as he questions the boy. "No, sir! I have lived without my leg longer than I had it, so I will find a way to do what you ask." "Well then, Neon. It sounds like you have a bright future with us here, if you will forgive my pun. Barnaby, go get yourself fixed up. I will take him from here and get him settled." Barnaby nods. "Good luck, kid. Feel free to keep the crutch until you find something better." And with that, he turns and hobbles off towards the infirmary. Chiron turns and leads the boy off towards cabin 11, giving him general camp rules as they go. Chapter 2 ---The following morning--- Neon sits on his bunk after breakfast, going over the new schedule sheet he had just received a few minutes ago. First up, close combat training. "Great..." he mutters. "I just got a new leg fitted yesterday evening and now they expect me to be able to use it well enough to fight?" He slides himself over to the edge of his bed and reaches down to pick up the rough wooden foot and lower leg that cabin nine had been able to throw together for him. A nice guy named Charlie had told him they would make something better, but it would take a few days. He slips the stump into the padded socket and hooks the supporting harness for it around his waist and upper thigh. He then pats down his pockets and digs through his trunk, trying to find something. He turns to the purple haired girl watching him from the next bunk over. "Hey...Naomi, right? Have you seen the key for my leg?" She stares back at him. her eyes large with wonder. "You have a key for your leg? Like a secret compartment or something?" Neon shakes his head. "No, its for tightening the straps. It looks like a winder for an old fashioned clock." Naomi give him an apologetic smile. "Sorry, haven't seen it. Is it hard to replace?" Neon sighs. "I don't know. It might be. I guess I will just have to wing it without for today." Neon stands and tests the leg. It is a little wobbly, but the main harness keeps it centered enough for him to use with only a minor limp. He gives Naomi a wave and heads out to the training grounds. Naomi watches him leave before pulling the intricately carved silver key out of her pocket. "Hard to replace means BIG bucks." She kisses her new treasure before slipping it back into her pocket with a smile. ---- Neon arrives at the arena and is directed over to a rack of spare weapons and armor by one of the assistant instructors. He picks out a short, but heavy axe for his weapon. Despite his large size, he also manages to put together a fairly complete set of armor. Just his prosthetic leg is missing armor, but that is going to be replaced soon anyways. A few dents and dings will not matter much. A pair of heavily tattooed girls watch his choices and whisper to each other with conspiratorial smiles on their faces. Several campers already nursing bruises or winded by their efforts are sitting on benches off to the sides. Neon steps up to the instructor for directions. The instructor looks out over the people not involved in matches. "Ok, which one of you want to take first crack at the new guy?" One of the tattooed girls steps up. "I will see what he has to work with." She gives him a confident and malicious smile, which comes across as both terrifying and rather pretty at the same time. The instuctor nods and the girl motions Neon over to one of the free sparring circles. She picks up an axe and shield on her way over to the ring. Neon follows and stands across from her. "You ready for your first lesson?" She asks and drops into a combat stance, ready to spring into action. "Sure. Let's get this over with." Neon says, not quite sure how to position himself. She nods. "First thing you need to know is that most fights are over before they start due to a good...DISABLER!" As she yells that last word, she springs across the distance between then and delivers a solid kick straight to the knee. Rather, it hits where a knee would normally be at, but in this case it just knocks Neon's prosthetic slightly out of place. Since he didn't have his weight on that leg anyways, Neon barely notices and swings his axe at the girl, catching her in her side. Her armor stops the bulk of the blow, but it still manages to draw some blood. The girl rolls out of reach and back to her feet. She stares at Neon in shock, wondering how he didn't go to the ground. Especially since the bigger ones usually go down the quickest. The crowd seems rather in shock too, with some of them starting to gag a bit. Neon looks down and sees his leg looks like the knee is bent backwards. He just laughs and gives a little kick to pop things back into place. The girl seems outraged not only by his lack of a fall, but by him laughing it off too. She charges straight at him, shield out in front. Neon readies himself for the clash, but she rolls to the side at the last possible second, swinging her axe around towards the back of his knee. Ripping and snapping sounds are heard as the lower part of Neon's leg goes skidding off to the side of the ring. The crowd of onlookers is in shock and a couple lose their breakfast onto the training ground floor. Neon checks his balance and then hops to face her on one leg. Even more upset that he is still standing, the girl leaps straight at him and knocks him to the ground. What Neon lacks in ground fighting skills, he more than makes up for with a big strength advantage. His missing leg seems to present a problem for the girl as well, since he is able to slip out of many holds that a full person would normally be trapped in. Both manage to land a few good punches and elbows on each other before the instructor comes over to break it up. "Let him up, Mallory." The girls leaps back to her feet and brushes her now messy hair away from her sweaty face. "Now THAT is the best tumble any boy has given me so far. You got a warrior's spirit in you, that's for sure." She smiles and offers him a hand up. "What's your name?" Neon seems confused by this sudden change from killer back into friendly girl, but he manages to answer, "Einion, or Neon for short." She pats him on the shoulder and looks him straight in the eyes. "I look forward to facing you again, Neon. But next time, I won't go so easy on you." She pats his cheek and then goes to join her tattooed friend before they walk off laughing towards the showers. Seeing that the excitement is over and that the one legged man is apparently not drained of blood or screaming in pain, the rest of the students and instructors all turn and head for the showers as well or go to whatever other pressing business they might have. Neon looks around and spots his wooden leg laying in the dust off to the side. He hops over to it and picks it up with the skill of someone who has been doing that for several years. He checks the leg and realizes the main support straps have been cut clean through. No chance of fixing this himself. Guess it is time for another trip to cabin nine. As he looks up, he sees a blonde girl with pale skin and striking teal-green eyes just standing there looking at him. She is in a sun dress and sandals, instead of the armor that everyone else had on. He recalls seeing her during class though. Maybe she has an excuse, like an injury, to sit out. Realizing he must be quite dusty after his rolling around in the ring, Neon does his best to knock the dirt off of himself. "Is there something I can do for you, miss?" She answers is a fairly timid voice, "I-I just wanted to make sure you are ok." Neon smiles at her. "Oh, sure. Happened all the time back ho...well, where I came from. Just need to get this patched up and I will be fine." He waggles the leg to show what needs repair. "Do you need help? It's a pretty far walk to cabin nine from here." "Sure." He smiles. "Wasn't looking forward to hopping there without a crutch." He then notices how small and frail she seems. "Are you sure you are up to it? I am a pretty big guy, after all." She smiles and nods before moving over to him and propping herself under his shoulder as a human crutch. They try taking a step together and quickly fall to the ground, as it becomes clear she is not strong enough to support his heavily muscled body. She looks up at him, tears starting to form in her eyes. "I'm so sorry. I really thought I could..." Neon laughs lightly. "Don't worry about it. I appreciate your trying. And there is still a way you can help me. Why don't you carry the broken leg, so I can focus on my balance a little better?" The girl wipes her eyes with the back of her hand and nods. She stands and picks up the leg while neon gets back to his feet on his own. Neon smiles, "See? No harm done. I am Neon, by the way." "Akantha." The girl answers back with a small smile as they begin the slow journey across the camp grounds to the cabin of the smiths. Chapter 3 ---The Next Morning--- THUD! "OW!!!!!" A girl's voice snaps Neon out of his slumber. He sits up quickly and looks around. He sees a tall brown haired girl get to her feet. She looks mad enough to breathe fire and she turns to look straight at Neon. He just has time to recognize her as the second tattooed girl from the day before, when she starts yellng at him. "Hey! Watch where you stick those big feet of yours, jerk! There is barely any room in here to begin with! We don't need some giant poking his feet out into the aisle for people to trip over! If you can't fit, then have the courtesy to sleep outside!" "Sor...," Neon starts to say before realizing something. "Hey! You are almost as tall as I am! If you have a problem with my height, then you should sleep outside too!" "Oh, you want me to sleep outside with you now? Are you making a pass at me, Mr Hulk? Cause that is not happening! Why Mal is interested I will...Hey, why are you butting into my personal life now, creep?!?" Neon stares at her in disbelief. "What are you talking about?!?!? You are the one that brought it up! Why would I care what you do in your personal time?" The girl fires back immediately. "Oh! I am not worth your notice? Like I am some kind of insignificant bug? Well, those are fighting words, mister! Let's take this outside then! I guarantee you won't be coming back and then this waste of space you are causing will be taken care of!" Neon sighs,"Okay. If that's the way it's got to be. Let's do this..." He reaches for his newly repaired prosthrtic leg and starts to strap it on. "What?!?" The girls eyes seem like they are about to pop out of her head in surprise. "You would actually beat up on a girl? You sick bastard! I won't even give you the chance!" And with that, she goes storming out of the cabin. "What was her problem...?" Neon wondered out loud. The only answer he got came in the form of giggling from some campers and hushed whispers form others. Neon just tries to put it out of his mind and starts to get ready for a new day. ---- ---Early Afternoon--- After a tough workout schedule in the morning, Neon felt glad to get an elective spot right after lunch. He paddled a canoe out across the lake. The combination of warm sunlight and small splashes of cool water was just what the doctor ordered to unwind for a bit. He decided to take a long route around the edge of the lake to take in as many sights as he could. As Neon approaches a small island on the far end of the lake, he begins to hear a plip, plip, plip, PLUNK. It sounds like someone is skipping rocks on the calm surface of the lake. He sees the tell-tale ripples of where each skip landed, but something feels odd about it. Then it hits him...the impact points are not in a straight line. Another rock comes whizzing out over the water and seems to arc sharply to one side from where it first appeared. Another rock follows a few moments later and this one almost seems to make a zig-zag pattern on the water. Neon decides to investigate and starts rowing over to where the stones appear to be launching from. As his line of sight clears a row of bushes, he sees a pale girl with reddish-brown hair searching the beach for the right types of skipping rocks. She is dressed like she is some kind of demi-god commando, waiting in ambush for some poor fool to wander by. No sooner does that thought pass through his mind than the girl whirls around and tosses a rock straight out into the lake. The path begins to arc and makes a line right for him. Neon tries to duck, but the rock still smacks solidly into his shoulder. "Ow! Hey ! Watch what you're doing over there!" The girl looks over at him. "I am watching what I am doing! Why did you get in the way? You messed up my training!" Neon yells back, "I was just floating here. How am I in your way?" "You are suppossed to try to dodge! And I am suppossed to adjust!" "I did try to dodge!" "Well then your dodging sucks!" Neon is about to fire something back when another thought crosses his mind. "Hey! What do you mean by adjust? It's a rock! How are you making them skip on a curved throw?" The girl grabs a small pile of rocks and gets ready to make a few more throws. "No time to explain. Get lost or get sunk!" She hauls back her arm and let's go with a mighty throw directly at Neon's boat. Neon dodges at the last second and the girl on the shore cheers, "Now we're talking. Finally a good target!" And she starts to chuck a few more. Neon paddles as quickly as he can away from the beach. Most of the rocks splash harmlessly in the water around him, but one jagged one smacks the side of the canoe and starts a crack which begins to leak. "Damn! Crazy girl...note to self, find what cabin she is in and give those loonies a wide berth." Neon padles back to the main boat dock. The canoe gets heavier and heavier as he goes as it takes on water. He is covered in sweat by the time he makes it back to the dock, his afternoon relaxation having been turned into one of the more intense workouts of the day. What else could possibly happen.... Chapter 4 ---Day 4--- Breakfast had just let out and Neon limps towards the forge. Ever since receiving his schedule, he thought that crafting and care of weapons and armor sounded like something fun and now he is on his way to that class for his first lesson. He opens the door and is met by a scorching blast of hot air. "This is going to be awesome." He is one of the last to arrive, obviously. He just doesn't have the same level of speed as the kids with two good legs have. He makes his way to an empty spot at one of the work benches, where the res tof the class has gathered. A big dark skinned guy from cabin 9 steps up in front of the group and clears his throat. "Before the summer session is done, we hope to have many of you actually forging new items from raw materials. But before you can do that, you need to understand basic weapons and armor designs. How parts fit together and how to repair minor breaks. Please make sure you have all safety gear in place before you start working. When ready, feel free to grab whichever item you find most interesting from the supply bin over here and see what you can do to work it back into useable shape. Instructors will roam around to provide advice." Neon figures he can't beat the rush over to the bin, so he focuses on getting himself ready for the work first and will just take whatever is left when the crowd around the bin thins out. He easily slips into the heavy leather work apron, safety goggles, and gloves. It seems like the most natural thing in the world. He walks over to the bin and looks to see what is left. He spots a rusty looking axe head buried among the random bits. It must have been beautiful before. Probably get set aside when it's handle was broken and then just got left somewhere to gather dust and rust. He finds a second axe as well, a two-hander. The blades are chipped and cracked beyong repair, but the the wooden handle is still in pretty good shape. It will take some modifying to use it, but everything needed is there. Removing the handle from the two-handed axe goes pretty quickly, as there is a lot of surface area to hold onto and the head piece was about ready to come apart on its own anyways. Removing the broken handle fragments from the one-handed axe head proves much more challenging. There is barely anything to hold onto that is not rusty blade. With some careful positioning and a few solid hammer blows though, he is finally able to work the fasteners out and remove the splintered wood from the axe head. Working out the old handle took more time than he thought it would, so the next few steps are going to have to be quick. He eyeballs the long handle and take a calculated guess as to about how long he needs it to be for a one-handed weapon. He grabs a saw and quickly cuts off the excess length. Next he grabs a file and starts to reshape the other end of the handle to fit to the socket of the head he is going to attach it to. Neon looks up at the clock. "Dang! Only a few minutes left!" He slips the handle into the axe head and grabs some metal spikes to nail it into place. He rains hammer blows down on it until he is satisfied that it is seated properly. He then goes to work on buffing the rust off the blade. He was right that the blade itself is in great shape. The rust is really only superficial. Within moments he has a shiny, well constructed axe in hand. He nearly drops it as someone whistles from right over his shoulder. "Nice blade you got there. Can I take a closer look?" Mallory says to him. Neon smiles at her, not really expecting to be complimented on his first bit of work. "Sure!" he replies, holding out the axe for her. Mallory picks it up and gives it a few test swings. "Nice balance to it. Would be killer in a fight. Maybe even work for throwing , if needed." One of the instuctors walks over. "Nice axe, Mal. Your skills are really improving." Mallory smiles. "Thanks, but it's not mine. He did this one." She points to Neon. The instructor looks at Neon with wide eyes. "You did this in one session?" "Y-yeah...isn't that what we are suppossed to do?" Neon answers, sure he has done something wrong. The instructor just points over at the other workbenches where students are picking up half finished items and hanging them on pegs or stuffing them in cubby holes along the wall to work on more next time. "This is your first time, right? How did you manage to crank this out so fast? Even children of the smith god can't..." The instructors words are cut off as a glowing red symbol appears over Neon's head. An axe crossed with a hammer. Two symbols of Hephaestus. Neon and most of the others in the room stare at him. "Well...maybe they can. Welcome to the family, brother." The instructor clasps Neon's hand and shakes it firmly. "Come see me after class and we can talk about getting you moved in." As the instuctor walks away, Mallory jumps in front of Neon. "Congratulations! I knew you had to be a five or a nine. And I am kinda glad it's nine." She smiles sweetly at him before asking, "Can I keep this?" Neon blushes and then notices her hugging the flat side of the axe against her chest. "Uh, sure. I guess. If we are allowed to take them..." "Thanks!" she says with a smile, before standing on her tiptoes and giving him a kiss on the cheek. She winks at him and waggles the axe as she starts to walk towards the exit. "See you around, handsome." Neon stands there in a daze as he watches her walk away. The sight of her is soon bloacked by a crowd of other students heading out of the workshop as well. One of his new brothers walks over and gives him a hearty smack on the shoulder. "Better watch yourself with those Ares girls. They like to play rough. C'mon, let's get you settled in..." Chapter 5 ---3 days later--- Neon stands next to a workbench closest to the open doors of the forge. He smiles as he works on putting together a new axe. The last few days have been among the happiest he can remember. First he got claimed and finally gained a real family for the first time in his life. He settled in quickly and discovered he had a natural talent for working with hammers and axes. Last, but certainly not least, 2 campers and a satyr had successfully returned from their quest and the camp had been in a pretty light and festive mood since then. He pauses for a second and closes his eyes as a cool breeze blows in through the open doors and gives a brief respite from the scorching heat of the melting metals at the other end of the room. The day just seems perfect. Nothing can spoil the way things are going...well, almost... A heavy rock bounces off the front of his thick leather apron about the time a voice from the doorway yells, "Think fast!!!" The stone goes skidding off to the side and knocks over a rack of spears along the wall. Neon turns to see Zal standing just outside the door, winding up for another pitch. She chucks the stone and makes it arc right for his head before she goes running off out of view. Neon waits until the last second to move, in case Zal is still watching and decides to make a course correction. Just before it can impact his nose, he jumps backwards. He runs into something solid and it goes crashing into a stack of empty storage crates behind him as the rock bounces harmlessly off one of the support pillars that holds up the roof. Neon starts to turn around to see what he ran into. He had specifically cleared the area around his workbench of any tripping hazards before he got to work. His chair maybe? No, that is still where he last left it. "What on Earth was that?" He turns to the toppled pile of crates and starts setting them aside, looking for the source of the mystery. First crate, nothing. Second crate, nothing. He moves the third crate and stops stunned at what he sees. A pale pair of legs are kicking in front of him. His eyes follow them to their owner and he turns a bright shade of red as it sinks in that he is looking at a girl's underwear. He tries to look away and stammers, "A-are you ok? I'm sorry. I didn't know you were there." He doesn't hear a reply, so he sneaks a peek back in the girl's direction. He recognizes the girl as Akantha, the one who tried to help him after his first fighting lesson. She is even brighter red than he is as she quickly tries to tug the loose folds of her sundress back to where they cover what they are supposed to be covering. He offers her his hand and helps her back to her feet. "I am sooo sorry. Were you coming to see me for something?" She nods her head yes and holds out a charm bracelet with a broken link on it. Neon looks it over. "Did that break during your fall?" She shakes her head no. "It was the reason I came in the first place," she says in a whisper quiet voice, still embarrassed and not meeting his gaze. Neon takes the bracelet over to his bench and pulls out some tools for finer work. "I am sure I can fix this...in fact, I think I might even be able to add something to it." He smiles at her and she catches his gaze long enough to smile back. Neon quickly works the broken link back into the correct shape and fuses the two ends together to complete the loop. He then takes a small piece of silver that he had originally intened to melt down and use for engraving on the axe he has under construction. Instead, he cuts a small, flat piece into a shape similar to the shape of the sun dress that Akantha has on. Akantha stands to the side and looks over his shoulder as he carefully etches grooves into the surface to further mirror the folds and pleats of her outfit. He attaches the finished charm to the bracelet and holds it out to her. "There. All fixed. And now with an extra charm to hopefully ward off any more dress mishaps." He laughs, with a blush still on his cheeks. She takes the bracelet and slips it onto her wrist. "Thanks!" She holds up her arm to admire the bracelet and the new charm in the light. "It's perfect!" She says and quickly gives him a quick kiss on the cheek before hurrying towards the exit. Right before she leaves, she turns around to look at him one more time. She smiles and nervously says, "H-hey Neon. Do you...?" She then pauses as if thinking about what she is about to ask and turns the same deep red she was after her fall. "W-wait. N-nevermind..." She turns and runs out of the building. Neon smiles as he watches her go. "I wonder what she wanted to ask. Whatever it is, I hope it means I get to see her around more." He smiles and starts to daydream as he puts away the jeweler's tools and gets back to work on his project again. Chapter 6 Akantha hurries away from the forge as quickly as she can. Oh my gods! Did that really just happen? She thinks quietly to herself as she runs. She starts to feel out of breath from the running and the embarassment, but she can't stop where he might still see her. Maybe that building up ahead... Akantha runs around the corner and smacks into something solid. What breath she has left is knocked out of her as she falls backwards onto the ground. When did they plant a tree here? she thinks as she looks up to see what she ran into. A cold feeling spreads through her chest as she sees two angry faces looking down at her. Valencia grabs a handful of the front of Akantha's dress and lifts the smaller girl up before pinning her up against the wall of the building. "Well, well. What have we here? Out for a little stroll?" Mallory grabs Akantha's wrist and holds up the charm bracelet to the light. Seeing the new charm, her face goes red with fury. "Just what the hell do you think you are doing with MY boyfriend?" Val gives Mallory a sideways look. "He isn't your boy yet, girl." Mallory snaps back, "He will be soon enough!" She turns her gaze back to Akantha and points her finger at her face. "Which means you stay well away from him, you little b*tch!" Tears start to well up in Akantha's eyes. "You can't do that! He likes me!" Val slaps Akantha across the face, leaving a bright red welt in it's wake. "Didn't you hear what she just said?" Mallory stares into Akantha's eyes. "I swear, if I catch you anywhere within shouting distance of him, I will...." Akantha trembles as Mallory addresses her, but she just can't give up on what she wants. The words are out of her mouth before she can censor herself. "You'll do what?" Mallory yells and an instant later there is a razor sharp axe blade slammed an inch into the wall, barely a centimeter from Akantha's cheek. Akantha sees the flash of the blade and is overwhelmed with fear as her vision starts to go dark. Val sees the girl black out and tosses her limp form roughly on the ground. "What a wimp..." Mallory pulls her axe from the wall with one good yank. "I think I got my point across though. No worries from her anymore." Val snickers, "Not sure that big lunk is worth all this though." Mallory laughs, "All what? You would have hit her anyways for any number of other things." Val smiles and hits Mallory playfully in the arm, "True enough. Just saying he is a huge hunk of..." Mallory grins slyly, "He certainly is....he most certainly is...and I like it that way. I can see if he has a brother for you, if you want." Val pulls back in shock, "GODS NO! He is all yours, girl." Mallory looks at the sky dreamily, yet with a wolf like grin. "Think he would let me tattoo my name on him?" Val laughs, "I say we do it anyways, regardless of what he says." The two girls laugh as they walk away together, chatting about what they would like to do to Neon as well as several other campers. Akantha begins to stir. Her eyes flicker open and she sits up. She looks from the departing girls to the forge and then back again. "This isn't over yet..." Chapter 7 Category:LongClawTiger Category:Action Category:Adventure Category:Romance Category:PG-13 Rated Story